


Where Have All the Flowers Gone?

by st_aurafina



Series: Playing Hard to Get [3]
Category: Iron Man (2008), X-Men (Movieverse)
Genre: Crossover, Ficathon, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-08-15
Updated: 2009-08-15
Packaged: 2017-10-04 05:41:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,570
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26650
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/st_aurafina/pseuds/st_aurafina
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A protest at Stark Industries proves unexpectedly enlightening for Tony.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Where Have All the Flowers Gone?

**Author's Note:**

> Set before X-Men 2 and the Iron Man movie. Written for the 2009 marvel_crossing challenge, for second_batgirl.  
> (Thank you to lilacsigil and wizefics for beta-reading.

Tony swivelled his leather chair, turning his back on the floor-to-ceiling windows. He had designed his office at Stark Industries with walls of glass, so that whenever he was forced to be here to present proposals, he could at least enjoy the view all the way to the gates. Today, though, the vista was spoiled by the press of protestors. The uneven lettering of the banners (ARC REACTOR NOW!) was already getting on his nerves, and he was sure he could hear the chanting, even through the double glazing. It wasn't that he minded protestors under normal circumstances. He'd picked up more than one pretty, bored peacenik for a bit of fun and some of the best pot he'd ever smoked. The alternative energy groups, though, bothered him more than he cared to admit. Every one of them seemed to be pointing directly at him, reminding him of all the times he'd promised himself he'd take another look at making the arc reactor marketable. He just never seemed to get around to it.

Tony prodded the model car on his desk until it clattered over the edge. He had better things to do than to let this stuff get under his skin. He watched the car – a model for a vehicle that he'd never built - land neatly on all four wheels and scoot towards the door, and he leaned forward in his seat to follow it.

Pepper swept into the room, collected the tiny car without breaking her stride, and placed it firmly on the desk. "Do not even think about making a break for freedom – I don't think even you could sweet-talk Obadiah into letting you skip a board meeting. He's in a stew – the demonstrators egged his car on the way in. He's just waiting for one of them to step onto the property so he can have security round them up."

"That's not going to look great on the news. Not even on Fox." Tony settled back in his chair and turned it to face the glass again. Outside, Obadiah leaned against the gate-house with a contingent of security personnel, utterly relaxed, as if there weren't hundreds of people pressing against the fence, screaming and chanting. He gestured at the gate, and it swung open slowly. Realising what was about to happen, some of the protestors tried to move back, but the crowd tumbled towards the opening in a great mass. Obadiah gestured genially toward them with his hands wide spaced, and the security guards formed a line with linked elbows that funnelled the protestors towards the arc reactor facility. Tony watched in some fascination as every straggling protestor who had set foot on Stark property was neatly rounded up and bundled into the viewing chamber that looked down on the arc reactor.

Tony turned back to look at Pepper. "He's called the police, right? Otherwise, I'm pretty sure that's deprivation of liberty, even if Obie is calling it a tour of the facilities."

Pepper nodded, with that crisp uninvolved expression she used when she disagreed with Obadiah. "They're on their way. They've been on standby since the crowd started forming this morning. This will all be sorted out soon."

There was a soft cough from the doorway as someone politely cleared their throat. Pepper stepped aside in surprise at the strangers standing behind her. Tony thought the bald man in the wheelchair was oddly familiar, and though he didn't recognise the red-headed woman standing beside the chair, he wished that he did. Tall and smart: it was the best combination.

"Mr Stark, please forgive this intrusion," – the man's chair moved forward smoothly as he spoke – "There is a matter of urgency we must discuss."

Pepper rallied first. "Excuse me, I'm afraid that Mr Stark has no appointments this morning. Would you like to come with me? I can check his schedule to find his next available opening." She looked back at Tony with a meaningful glance.

Tony raised his eyebrows at her."I'm sorry. I don't know what you're trying to tell me."

"She wants you to stop checking out my legs and call security." The woman took two long steps to Tony's desk and put her hand over the phone. "But you're not going to do that, are you?"

Tony smiled what he hoped wasn't a goofy grin and shook his head. "Nope. I promise."

The man held up a warning hand. "Jean, take care. Some minds are more susceptible than others."

"You're assuming I'm using telepathy, Professor." Jean shook her head. "Not necessary. Yet."

"Telepathy?" Pepper's voice disappeared in a soft squeak. She backed towards the door, and the man in the wheelchair held up his hand.

"Please, Miss Potts, we won't be here for long, and I assure you that neither of you are in any danger. We're here to appeal to Mr Stark's common sense."

"Huh?" Tony was beginning to think that he didn't have any common sense. Jean had very long legs. Long and lean and lovely.

Jean crossed her arms and fixed him with a stare. "You have one of our students in custody – she was at the protest. Now, she's perfectly capable of getting herself out of that room with all the electrical equipment, but that would do a considerable amount of damage to the arc reactor."

Tony sat up straight. "There's a mutant in the same room as the arc reactor?" That was much more important than ogling a leggy, smart and slightly mean red-head.

"She means no harm." The Professor folded his hands on his lap, "And she's showing considerable restraint under the circumstances, restraint I cannot guarantee should the police be involved in this matter."

"It's going to save all of us a lot of bad press if we can just take Kitty and leave before the police get here." Jean tilted her head as if listening to a distant noise. Tony tilted his head in the same direction, but couldn't hear a thing himself. "That will be in about eight minutes."

"Well, let's make it snappy, then." Tony stood up, and offered his arm to the mysterious Jean. She declined the offer and stepped back to allow him to pass.

"But..." Pepper looked at Tony, infuriated. "You can't just go with them. Let me go." She caught Tony's elbow as he swept past. "Let me call security, please. These are _mutants_, Tony."

Tony rolled his eyes. "Yeah, but this is obviously the friendly face of mutants, Pepper. We don't want to tick them off. They're only going to wipe our minds afterwards. Which would be a terrible shame, by the way." He nodded towards Jean. "I don't want to forget a moment of this." He strode out of the office, leaving everyone else to follow in his wake. Jean rolled her eyes and walked out behind him.

"We're not going to wipe your mind, Miss Potts, that would be terribly unethical." The Professor followed Jean, his chair humming as it moved smoothly over the carpet.

"How would I know anyway?" Pepper clenched her teeth as they all made their way to the elevators.

"So, that must be some kind of school, letting your students attend political protests." Tony shoved his hands in his pockets and leaned against the smoked glass wall of the elevator. "What else is on the curriculum? Lobbying for peace in the Middle East? Chaining yourself to redwoods?"

"Our students are mutants, Mr Stark. They already know that their voices are less likely to be heard. It would be irresponsible to offer them a rose-tinted view of the world." The Professor had an expression that irked Tony – a face that said "This otherwise bland statement has huge relevance to you, if only you had the foresight. Puny mortal." Tony rolled that last, insolent thought around his mind, watching his expression for any reaction. The Professor mildly raised an eyebrow of inquiry at Tony's close scrutiny but said nothing. Jean, on the other hand, could barely contain a smirk.

Tony leaned closer to her. "So, I take it he's better at this than you?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about." The elevator doors opened and Jean stalked out into the lobby. Pepper followed, giving Tony another glare as she passed him. Tony shrugged and put his hand over the door sensor to stop them closing on the Professor's chair.

The lobby was refreshingly normal – people flocking in and out of the doors, people behind the main desk answering phones. Nobody looked twice at Tony's strange entourage. That was a little odd. Then again, Tony had been seen in stranger company, so perhaps telepathy wasn't to blame for that. He spread his arms expansively.

"Now, I'm no telepath, but I'm guessing the fewer people who see your faces, the less fuss it is to wipe their minds later, so you'll probably want to wait here while I fetch your student."

The Professor nodded. "I assure you, there's no need to be concerned. But yes, discretion would be appreciated. We like to give our students the choice to reveal themselves as mutants, rather than force them into the public eye. There are issues of personal safety to be considered."

"I'll go with you," Jean said firmly, and this time she took Tony's arm, virtually dragging him towards the arc reactor display.

Tony looked back over his shoulder at Pepper, all alone beside the Professor's chair. She was nervously watching the security guards, whose attention was completely focused on the protest. "Hey, Pepper. Don't worry, the guards have all been trained in the Keanu Reeves method of hostage negotiation."

Pepper gave him an anguished look, but the Professor spoke to her, his voice soft. "You have nothing to fear, Miss Potts. You are not a hostage. I understand that Stark Industries was one of the first companies to add mutants to their equal employment policy. I'd love to hear more about that decision." Pepper's posture relaxed, though Tony couldn't hear her reply – Jean was towing him along by the elbow at a great speed.

"Now, that? That was mean." Jean obviously was not a woman who forgave easily.

The viewing chamber of the arc reactor was purpose-built to handle large crowds of people – it was the company showpiece after all. Obadiah stood at the entrance with a contingent of security guards, shouting into his phone.

"He's angry because the police have been inexplicably delayed." Jean looped an arm through Tony's, and suddenly changed her demeanour, leaning closer, letting her hair sweep across her face. Obadiah's gaze passed over the two of them, and Tony recognised his expression of fond exasperation at seeing Tony with yet another beautiful woman. A surge of noise from the protestors conveniently drew Obie's attention, and he and Jean slipped in through the glass doors, merging with the crowd of protestors.

"Doctor Grey!" A teenager wriggled out of the crowd. She was even younger than Tony had expected, but he liked her determined expression and her T-shirt that said _Conservation of energy? Make it a law!_. "What are you doing here? I think the police are coming. This is awesome, we've really made a statement."

Jean put her arm around the girl. "Kitty, why didn't you tell us where you were going?"

"Because you would have talked me out of it, and this is too important." Kitty looked Tony up and down then assumed an interrogative posture. "Why do you keep derailing your own research on arc reactor technology? Why are you not forthcoming on your financial dealings with petrochemical companies?"

"Well," said Tony. "You're quite the go-getter. You looking for an internship?"

Kitty made a face. "No, thanks. I'm not getting into bed with the military industrial complex."

"Wow, what are they teaching you at this school, exactly?"

"How to think for ourselves." Kitty looked him right in the eye, and Tony was a little discomforted. He fished in his pocket for a card.

"Well, when you're ready to get into bed with someone, you give me a call. I like to think I have an eye for talent."

Kitty ignored the card and stared at him, her arms crossed. Tony had the unpleasant idea that she was weighing up the best place to kick him very hard. He quelled an urge to protect his vitals.

"Kitty." Jean's voice was a low warning.

Kitty relaxed her posture and stepped back. "I want to stay with my friends. I don't want special treatment."

Jean took her by the shoulder. "You know that if they find out you're a mutant, they'll give you special treatment, but not the kind you're thinking of. Come with us – your friends will be fine. There's no need to complicate matters for them."

"It's not right."

"I know." Jean hugged her. "Come with me now, and we'll fight that battle later."

Tony frowned, still discomforted by Kitty's determined gaze. Was it really that long since he had been that enthusiastic about anything? He looked back at the arc reactor over his shoulder as they left. Maybe he could find some time to work on it later today.

Obadiah caught him as he went past, and pulled him close, but didn't stop Jean and Kitty leaving the observation chamber. "Remember that little talk about jailbait we had a few years ago, Tony?"

Tony shrugged out of his grip. "Don't worry, Obie. I promise you it's all above board. Speaking of which, we still doing that meeting later?"

Obie gave a curt nod, and gestured back towards the protestors. "This is small potatoes, we'll be done soon." A long line of squad cars filed in through the main gate and fanned out in front of the observation chamber. "Maybe sooner, if we're lucky." He slapped Tony on the shoulder. "Meet you upstairs in half an hour, so be done with your other business, okay?"

Tony nodded, and made his way to the lobby, hands in pockets, all nonchalance. In the reflection of the lobby door, he could see Obie's attention was completely diverted into dealing with the police. For some reason, it seemed important that Obie did not take note of the two women he had smuggled away before the police arrived. Probably some lasting effect of the telepathic meddling, he reasoned, watching the Professor lift himself into a long, sleek Rolls-Royce that certainly had not been parked outside the lobby a moment ago. He waved as the car pulled away towards the gate. Telepathy. Someone should look into a military application.

_Be careful where that clever mind takes you, Tony Stark. One day you will look out of those big windows and see that what you do has larger consequences in the real world. _ The voice in his head was dry and circumspect, and as clear as if the Professor was sitting right in front of him.

"Oh, yeah. Now you're off my property, you use telepathy." Tony wasn't sure if Charles could hear him or not, but he projected the words as hard as he could, imagining his mind was a loudspeaker. "You enjoy the trip back to your compound or whatever. I look forward to reading your manifesto."

There was no answer. Tony shrugged and went to look for Pepper. She was probably calling the Pentagon or something by now. And later, after he'd delivered the Jericho proposal, he'd get back to that arc reactor.


End file.
